A season-long slugfest between Sean Hingorani and Tyler Reif for the ARCA Menards Series West championship will be settled Friday at Phoenix Raceway in the Desert Diamond Casino West Valley 100.
The two young competitors have traded the West Series points lead several times over the preceding 11 races. Going into Phoenix, Hingorani is in an ideal position to defend his title from 2023, as he currently holds a 14-point advantage over Reif.
Hingorani’s path toward the top of the West Series standings has been far from orthodox. He has competed with four different organizations across the 2024 season: Hattori Racing Enterprises, Sigma Performance Services, Jerry Pitts Racing and Venturini Motorsports.
Venturini, the team with which Hingorani won his 2023 championship, has guided him to all three of his victories this year. Hingorani swept the doubleheader at Irwindale Speedway on Independence Day weekend before claiming the most recent West Series event at Kevin Harvick’s Kern Raceway.
Eight consecutive top-five finishes have enabled Hingorani to assume control of the West Series standings. An ignition failure at Madera Speedway proved to be catastrophic for Reif, who had found his stride during the summer with back-to-back victories at Shasta Speedway and Tri-City Raceway.
The poor showing at Madera overshadowed what had been a great maiden full-time season for Reif with Central Coast Racing to that point. Reif’s triumph at Shasta served as the first West Series victory for Central Coast since co-owner Todd Souza brought home a checkered flag at Utah Motorsports Campus back in 2008.
Although he trails Hingorani in the point standings, Reif enters Phoenix having previously visited Victory Lane there during a 2023 combination event between the West Series and national ARCA Menards Series. Reif has also statistically fared better at Phoenix, as his average finish at the facility across four races is 7.3. Hingorani’s is 11.8.
With 24 cars on the entry list for the Desert Diamond Casino West Valley 100, Reif will need luck on his side if he wants to erase his deficit to Hingorani. All Hingorani needs is to finish ninth or better on Friday regardless of what Reif does to become the first back-to-back West Series champion since Jesse Love accomplished that feat from 2020-21.
The final battle between Sean Hingorani and Tyler Reif for the West Series championship commences Friday at 11:30 a.m. MT / 1:30 p.m. ET. FloRacing will have coverage of all the on-track action at Phoenix.
William Sawalich, Connor Zilisch set for one last ARCA battle
Before the two embark on full-time NASCAR Xfinity Series campaigns in 2025, William Sawalich and Connor Zilisch will have one last battle on the ARCA Menards Series platform with Friday’s Phoenix race.
Sawalich and Zilisch have not left each other’s sightlines each time they have competed in the same ARCA-sanctioned event. The two have won a combined 17 events on the platform, with Sawalich having 11 victories in total compared to the six accumulated by Zilisch.
Although Sawalich and Zilisch were not old enough to contend for a national ARCA title, they did contest the entire East Series schedule. Zilisch appeared to have the championship locked up before he was collected in a crash during the finale at Bristol Motor Speedway, giving the title to Sawalich.
The heated rivalry between Sawalich and Zilisch will endure with two of the Xfinity Series’ top programs. Sawalich has already made a couple starts with Joe Gibbs Racing before pursuing a championship in 2025, all while Zilisch looks to excel with JR Motorsports after winning in his debut race at Watkins Glen International.
Only bragging rights are on the line for Zilisch and Sawalich in Friday’s Desert Diamond Casino 100 as they each look to close 2024 with one more ARCA Menards Series platform victory on the resume.
Marco Andretti seeks momentum in first start with Venturini Motorsports
One of the most iconic names in motorsports history is teaming up with one of the most successful families in ARCA Menards Series history.
Marco Andretti, a two-time IndyCar Series winner, will drive the No. 25 Rich Mar Florist Toyota for Venturini Motorsports in Friday’s Desert Diamond Casino West Valley 100 at Phoenix Raceway. Andretti joins Venturini after previously competing with Cook Racing Technologies on a part-time basis.
The first season for Andretti on the ARCA Menards Series platform has been one filled with adversity. Five of Andretti’s 11 appearances in the national ARCA Menards Series ended with him behind the wall, though he did manage to secure a top-five finish at the Mid-Ohio Sports Car Course in June.
Like with Mid-Ohio, Andretti has familiarity with Phoenix from his time in the IndyCar Series. He competed in three IndyCar Series races at the facility from 2016-18 and has since run both a NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series and ARCA Menards Series race there, the latter of which resulted in a 17th place finish in March.
A strong performance from Andretti in Friday afternoon’s race could serve as a springboard for both him and Venturini as they each prepare to regroup and focus on their respective plans for the 2025 season.
NOTES:
- Rev Racing will bring two cars to Phoenix Raceway for the Desert Diamond Casion West Valley 100 at Phoenix Raceway, with the No. 2 being driven by Sebastian Arias. During the 2024 ARCA Menards Series season, Arias made two starts in an extra car for Rev, scoring a season-best run of 10th at Charlotte Motor Speedway.
- Last year’s ARCA Menards Series West finale served as one of four races for Kaden Honeycutt that weekend between the East and West Coast. Honeycutt’s schedule is slightly less hectic this year, as he kicks off a doubleheader weekend at Phoenix Raceway driving the No. 23 for Sigma Performance Services.
- AM Racing is making the trip to Phoenix Raceway with Kole Raz in a car renumbered from No. 32 to No. 76. Although Raz’s part-time ARCA Menards Series West campaign has been filled with struggles, he did obtain his first victory at Kevin Harvick’s Kern Raceway by besting Trevor Huddleston in a photo finish.
- Trevor Huddleston has third in the ARCA Menards Series West standings all but secured heading into Friday’s Desert Diamond Casino West Valley 100 at Phoenix Raceway. The 2024 season has been a strong one for Huddleston with two victories, but he seeks to gain one more against the national ARCA Menards Series invaders.
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